Fear Itself

This week, Fear Itself: The Fearless #3 hits the stands. In a chapter titled “Angels & Demons,” the Secret Avengers battle a horde of vampires and Sin and Crossbones find a new home with a dark history of its own. Here’s a preview of the issue.

Today saw the release of the first issue of my first major project for Marvel. I’ve done a few one shots here and there, a couple of tie-ins to Fear Itself, and a mini-series featuring the old school Defenders. But this is something a little different. Fear Itself: The Fearless is a pretty big undertaking–12 issues published twice a month. I’m pretty pleased with the way it turned out, and I hope you will be, too. A few things to keep in mind about the series:

I’m working with two other writers–Matt Fraction and Chris Yost. We plotted the initial beats of this beast together, and now I’m scripting the series. As of this post, I’ve turned in scripts through issue 10, and I’ll probably turn in issue 11 tomorrow.

Two artists–Mark Bagley and Paul Pellitier–are handling art chores on the series… and they’re rocking on it.

Art Adams is doing the covers.

The protagonist of the story is Valkyrie, a character who is a lot of fun to write. She’s seemed a little under-utilized to me, so my goal here is to make her a major player and give readers a better understanding of what makes her tick.

The bad guys are Sin and Crossbones, the new Red Skull and her Neo-Nazi boy toy. Yeah, they’re a sweet couple. There are some other villains that show up in the third issue that I’m hoping get some more play once this series is finished.

There are more guest stars in the series than I can list here, but I’ll name a few. Captain America, War Machine, the Avengers, the X-Men, the Thunderbolts, Namor, and a couple of surprises.

The story revolves around Valkyrie’s quest to obtain the 8 hammers of the Serpent. Her reasons for collecting the hammers will be revealed over the course of the series. This, of course, puts her at odds with Sin… and everyone else in the Marvel Universe, hero and villain alike.

Even though this is a spin-off of Fear Itself, I don’t think you have to read that series to enjoy this one. I think it might add to your enjoyment, but I tried to write this so someone could come into it without knowing any continuity and enjoy it.

There is, however, a 4-page epilogue at the end of Fear Itself that ties into The Fearless directly.

Valkyrie breaks a lot of stuff and beats up on a lot of people (and monsters… and robots… and vampires) in this series.

As you can imagine, I’m pretty anxious about the book. I’m definitely interested in what you think about it. I’ve heard reports from a few comic book shops that the book is selling well and selling out. That’s good news! If your shop doesn’t have it, they should be able to re-order it. Ask them to hold future copies for you. It’s gonna be a wild ride.

Anyone who knows me knows that I am a HUGE fan of Art Adams’ work. I can clearly remember sitting on the floor reading an issue of Longshot for the first time on a rainy day in North Carolina. So, it is an incredible thrill and honor that he is doing the covers for Fear Itself: The Fearless! Marvel has released a couple of sneak peeks at the covers to issues 4 and 5.

For those of you who thought this book might be boring, suck on this!

Marvel is pleased to present your first look at legendary artist’s, Arthur Adams, inked covers to Fear Itself: The Fearless #4 & #5! The blockbuster creative team of Matt Fraction, Cullen Bunn, Chris Yost, Mark Bagley & Paul Pelletier, hold the Marvel Universe in their hands as Valkyrie searches desperately for the cursed hammers left behind by the Serpent and his Worthy! Taking no prisoners, she must beat her way through the heroes and villains of the Marvel Universe to collect them before Sin does! Don’t miss how her mission begins, this October, in Fear Itself: The Fearless #1!

Stay tuned to Marvel.com for more on Fear Itself: The Fearless and to see these covers in full color!

Can Valkyrie go up against Earth’s Mightiest and make it out in one piece? Join the conversation on Twitter with #FearItself!

Hmm. You think it would cost me an arm and a leg for the original art for one of those covers?

Here’s a first look at Fear Itself: The Fearless #1. The book hits the shelves on October 19!

The hunt is on! Mystical hammers lay strewn across the entire Marvel Universe and in Fear Itself: The Fearless #1 from the blockbuster creative team of Matt Fraction, Cullen Bunn, Chris Yost, Mark Bagley & Paul Pelletier, Valkyrie is off to find them! Her mission is simple – find these weapons of mass destruction no matter what the cost, and no matter who stands in her way…even Captain America & the Avengers! Except while Valkyrie is trying to save the world, Sin is looking to burn it to the ground. No fan can miss Fear Itself: The Fearless #1!